Infections rise by fifth in lockdown
RISE IN TRANSMISSION OF COVID-19 GOES ON AT SAME RATE DESPITE RESTRICTIONS
THE number of coronavirus infections in Greater Manchester has increased by more than a fifth since the introduction of local restrictions to halt the spread of the virus.
Updated figures now reveal how the spread of coronavirus has continued in the fortnight after the new restrictions were brought into force.
They show that across the whole of Greater Manchester the number of positive tests increased at a similar rate to the two weeks leading up to the restrictions.
When the local lockdown was imposed the seven-day average was 117 cases per day across Greater Manchester. That rose to 144 cases two weeks later on August 14 - an increase of 23 per cent.
The peak was on August 10, when 200 cases were recorded on a single day in Greater Manchester for the first time in nearly three months. Figures for the four days after August 10 appear to show the upward trend has started to fall away but it is too early to tell if this will continue.
The increase in cases in Greater Manchester has largely been driven by a spike in cases in Oldham, where the weekly infection rate per 100,000 people rose to over 100, at the time the highest rate in England. However, the coronavirus infection rate is now going down in Oldham - but continues to rise in Manchester. The city now has an infection rate of 47.6, just short of the 50 which would place it on red alert on the government watchlist.
A further 154 cases were announced yesterday across Greater Manchester, which is the highest daily increase for the last three days.
In other boroughs, the picture has been more mixed, and in some areas cases have fallen in the two weeks since local lockdown was imposed.
In Wigan, which was the only borough in the region with an infection below the national average, there has been little change after the restrictions were brought in. The number of deaths reported among patients with Covid-19 has remained low across Greater Manchester since July 30 and has shown no sign of increasing. The number of hospital admissions also remains very low.
In many areas, an increase in case numbers has been due to more tests being carried out with the positivity rate remaining level. However, the government’s declared strategy is to take action in any local area where cases are rising, which means further restrictions could be imposed.